Darmstadt $ν$ oscillations in decay of radioactive ion can only come from initial state wave function. Causality forbids any influence on transition probability by detection of $ν$ or final state interference after decay. Energy-time uncertainty allows two initial state components with different energies to decay into combination of two orthogonal states with same energy, different momenta and different $ν$ masses. Final amplitudes completely separated at long times have broadened energy spectra overlapping at short times. Their interference produces oscillations between Dicke superradiant and subradiant states having different transition probabilities. Repeated monitoring by interactions with laboratory environment at regular time intervals and same space point in laboratory collapses wave function and destroys entanglement. First-order time dependent perturbation theory gives probability for initial state decay during small interval between two monitoring events. Experiment measures momentum difference between two contributing coherent initial states and obtains information about $ν$ masses without detecting $ν$. Simple model relates observed oscillation to squared $ν$ mass difference and gives value differing by less than factor of three from values calculated from KAMLAND experiment. Monitoring simply expressed in laboratory frame not easily transformed to other frames and missed in Lorentz-covariant descriptions based on relativistic quantum field theory.
Darmstadt ν oscillations in decay of radioactive ion can only come from initial state wave function. Causality forbids any influence on transition probability by detection of ν or final state interference after decay. Energy-time uncertainty allows two initial state components with different energies to decay into combination of two orthogonal states with same energy, different momenta and different ν masses. Final amplitudes completely separated at long times have broadened energy spectra overlapping at short times. Their interference produces oscillations between Dicke superradiant and subradiant states having different transition probabilities. Repeated monitoring by interactions with laboratory environment at regular time intervals and same space point in laboratory collapses wave function and destroys entanglement. First-order time dependent perturbation theory gives probability for initial state decay during small interval between two monitoring events. Experiment measures momentum difference between two contributing coherent initial states and obtains information about ν masses without detecting ν. Simple model relates observed oscillation to squared ν mass difference and gives value differing by less than factor of three from values calculated from KAMLAND experiment. Monitoring simply expressed in laboratory frame not easily transformed to other frames and missed in Lorentz-covariant descriptions based on relativistic quantum field theory.
A superradiance theory is developed for two identical hydrogenic ions (four states each) in a microtrap, as in recent experiments. The ions oscillate (micromotion) due to the trap's radio frequency (rf) electric quadrupole field. One signature of superradiance is a deviation of the two-ion average upper state decay rate \ensuremath{\gamma}\ifmmode\bar\else\textasciimacron\fi{} from the one-ion value \ensuremath{\gamma}. A master equation is derived, giving a fractional change in the upper state lifetime \ensuremath{\gamma}/\ensuremath{\gamma}\ifmmode\bar\else\textasciimacron\fi{}-1=sinkR/2kR [J02(z)-2J12(z)+...]cos\ensuremath{\Phi}, where k=2\ensuremath{\pi}/\ensuremath{\lambda}, \ensuremath{\lambda} is the emission wavelength, R is the ion-ion distance, Jn(z) is a Bessel function of integer order n, and z=ka, a is the ion amplitude of motion, and \ensuremath{\Phi} is the two-ion relative phase due to the preparation. In the Lamb-Dicke regime, a, J02(z)\ensuremath{\approxeq}1 and thus superradiance is not influenced significantly by ion motion. This damped sinusoid is diluted by the factor of 1/2 due to destructive interference. Superradiance vanishes in the absence of coherent preparation, e.g., with inversion, as indicated by the time evolution of the two-ion dipole correlation function. Fringes and a beat at the rf are predicted in forward scattering, the most elementary form of optical free induction decay.
The act of measurement on a quantum state is supposed to "dephase" (dephasing refers to the phenomenon that the states lose phase coherence; then the phases get randomized in interaction with a bath of other oscillators, which is referred to as "decoherence"), then "decohere" and "collapse" (or more precisely "register" and "reduce") the state into one of several eigenstates of the operator corresponding to the observable being measured. This measurement process is sometimes described as outside standard quantum-mechanical evolution and not calculable from Schrödinger's equation. Progress has, however, been made in studying this problem with two main calculation tools-one uses a time-independent Hamiltonian, while a rather more general approach proving that decoherence occurs under some generic conditions. The two general approaches to the study of wave-function collapse are as follows. The first approach, called the "consistent" or "decoherent"' histories approach, studies microscopic histories that diverge probabilistically and explains collapse as an event in our particular history. The other, referred to as the "environmental decoherence" approach studies the effect of the environment upon the quantum system, to explain wave-function decoherence which is produced by irreversible effects of various sorts. However, as we know, wave-function collapse is not related to thermal connection with the environment, rather, it is inherent to how measurements are performed by macroscopic apparata. In the "environmental decoherence" approach, one studies decoherence using a Markovian-approximated Master equation to study the time-evolution of the reduced density matrix (post dephasing) and obtains the long-time dependence of the off-diagonal elements of this matrix. The calculation in this paper studies the evolution of a quantum system starting with "dephasing" followed by the effects of the environment with some differences from prior analyses. We start from the Schrödinger equation for the state of the system, with a time-dependent Hamiltonian that reflects the actual microscopic interactions that are occurring. Then we systematically solve (exactly) for the time-evolved state, without invoking a Markovian approximation when writing out the effective time-evolution equation, i.e., keeping the evolution unitary until the end. This approach is useful, and it shows that the system wave-function will explicitly "un-collapse" if the measurement apparatus is sufficiently small. However, in the limit of a macroscopic system, this "dephasing" quickly leads to "decoherence"-collapse is a temporary state that will simply take extremely long (of the order of multiple universe lifetimes) to reverse. This has been attempted previously and our calculation is particularly simple and calculable. We make some connections to the work by Linden et al. while doing so. The calculation in this paper has interesting implications for the interpretation of the Wigner's friend experiment, as well as the Mott experiment, which is explored in "Connection to some general theoretical results" and "Recurrence times" (especially the enumerated points in "Recurrence times"). The upshot is that as long as Wigner's friend is macroscopically large (or uses a macroscopically large measuring instrument), no one needs to worry that Wigner would see something different from his friend. Indeed, Wigner's friend does not even need to be conscious during the measurement that she conducts. It also allows one to reasonably interpret some of the more recent thought experiments proposed. In particular, as a result of the mathematical analysis, the short-time behavior of a collapsing system, at least the one considered in this paper, is not exponential. Instead, it is the usual Fermi-golden rule result. The long-term behavior is, of course, still exponential. This is a second novel feature of the paper-we connect the short-term Fermi-golden rule (quadratic-in-time behavior) transition probability to the exponential long-time behavior of a collapsing wave-function in one continuous mathematical formulation.
Quantum decoherence in neutrino oscillations was theorized almost 50 years ago, however there is still no clear theoretical understanding of this phenomenon, not even agreement on whether or not it could be observed at all. Treating all particles, including the source and detector, consistently in QFT, we are working on a model where the decoherence emerges from the time evolution of the initial state. We started by studying some simplified cases, obtaining nonetheless interesting results: we have shown that environmental interactions play crucial role in the emergence of decoherence, and if the neutrino creation happens in vacuum there is no maximal coherence length. We have also shown that some of the assumptions commonly used in literature (such as the covariance of the wavepackets) are inconsistent, since the time evolution would break the Lorentz invariance; moreover we have seen that, contrary to the usual intuition, the uncertainty on the detector momentum does not always play a relevant role in decoherence, at least as long as the detector particle is non-relativistic, since its contribution is suppressed by a factor proportional to p/M. Finally, we also notice the emergence of a new quantum effect: when the first neutrinos arrive, the oscillations do not starts immediately but only a very short amount of time; however, since the time window when this effect would be observable is extremely small, the precision required to measure such an effect is most likely well beyond the current technical capabilities
By employing the stochastic extension of the Madelung quantum-hydrodynamic description within a discrete methodology, we establish a solution using the path integral approach to explore the progression of quantum states' superposition. This investigation aims to understand the eventual establishment of a stable end-state configuration amid the backdrop of gravitational background fluctuations. The model identifies the circumstances that lead to a limited range of interaction for the quantum potential, allowing for the emergence of sizeable, classically described macroscopic phenomena. The theory unveils the lowest achievable level of uncertainty in an open quantum system and investigate its congruence with the localized behaviors of macroscopic classical systems. The study examines agreements and differences with decoherence theory and the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics, and evaluates the impact of wave function decay on the measurement process. The work also shows that the model is able to explain the deviation of the deuterium state in nuclear physics from the quantum mechanics
Abstract Relativistic quantum‐field theory provides the machinery for calculating wave functions or probability amplitudes depending upon space‐time coordinates. The currently accepted theory, however, fails to provide position operators and a means of measuring particle coordinates that are consistent with Dirac's properties of physical observables. This is because it calls for a space position probability distribution at a specified time. This paper shows, however, that space‐time event coordinate operators, together with a corresponding measurement procedure, can be found that are consistent with Dirac's requirements. This is done through a reinterpretation of the amplitudes computed by field theory and does not involve any change in that mathematical formalism. The measurement of the space‐time coordinates of an event is accomplished by detecting the absorption of a photon by a particle from each of two light pulses designed to overlap at a given point at a given time. If a final emitted photon has an energy whose sum with the final particle energy approximately equals the sum of the mean energies of the pulses, then the absorption of the two pulse photons must certainly have taken place within a distance the order of a Compton wavelength of the small space‐time region of overlapping pulses. This is clear from the fact that the high energy required to confine the pulses to very small volumes must throw a particle absorbing them far off the mass shell. Thus the absorption of the two photons throws the particle into a narrowly confined spatial wave function that must decay extremely rapidly—to within a Compton wavelength, a delta function in space‐time. This delta function is the eigenfunction of space‐time coordinate operators Xμ and is the scalar product of vectors in a Hilbert space spanned by spin–space‐time kets large enough to contain the operators of the Poincaré group. These event operators transform properly under the action of Poincaré operators but do not commute with the mass. If the Compton wavelength is not negligible compared to the accuracy desired in the coordinate measurements, individual coordinate measurements are no longer possible. Nevertheless, a large number of repeated coordinate measurements can be carried out to produce a coordinate probability distribution. This distribution can be unfolded to find a true coordinate probability distribution if the charge form factor is known from basic theory. An analysis of laboratory particle detection techniques shows that they actually determine space coordinates and energy rather than spatial coordinates at a given time. When this fact is included, the Klein–Nishina formula can be derived using the electromagnetic four‐vector potential as the photon probability amplitude wave. To clarify the meaning of the observables, a mass‐momentum measurement is described.
The basic strategy underlying models of spontaneous wave function collapse (collapse models) is to modify the Schrödinger equation by including nonlinear stochastic terms, which tend to localize wave functions in space in a dynamical manner. These terms have negligible effects on microscopic systems—therefore their quantum behaviour is practically preserved. On the other end, since the strength of these new terms scales with the mass of the system, they become dominant at the macroscopic level, making sure that wave functions of macro-objects are always well-localized in space. We will review these basic features. By changing the dynamics of quantum systems, collapse models make predictions, which are different from standard quantum mechanical predictions. Although they are difficult to detect, we discuss the most relevant scenarios, where such deviations can be observed.